CinderArmin
by seekingtomorrow
Summary: Once upon a time, there lived a beautiful boy named Armin who wanted nothing more than to go to the ball and dance with the princess. Too bad his foster-family doesn't consider him muscular enough to go. But maybe with a little help from a certain disgruntled fairy godmother, Armin's dreams can come true. Armin x Annie, Levi x Mikasa.
1. Chapter 1

**CinderArmin**

**SUMMARY: **Once upon a time, there lived a beautiful boy named Armin who wanted nothing more than to go to the ball and dance with the princess. Too bad his foster-family doesn't consider him muscular enough to go. But maybe with a little help from a certain disgruntled fairy godmother, Armin's dreams can come true. Armin x Annie, Levi x Mikasa.

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: **You know, I probably couldn't even tell you why I did this.

* * *

A long time ago in a kingdom ruled by a man with perfect eyebrows, lived a family. To the random outsider, it was a happy family with a happy, if strict father and three happy sons.

However, not all was happy in the Shadis household.

The youngest of the sons—a beautiful boy named Armin—wasn't as happy as his two brothers, Eren and Jean. You see, Armin wasn't born to the Shadis family. Armin used to live with his grandfather in a tiny cottage on the edge of town. However, when his grandfather died, Armin was quickly adopted by Keith Shadis, who made it his duty to ensure that Armin had an upbringing worthy of a soldier.

Armin soon found out that he wasn't made for the military life. He was a weak child, prone to illness when the weather got too cold. He preferred the company of books to his loud, rambunctious brothers.

"Armin!" The younger of the two, Eren, used to say. "We're going training today."

"You have to come," chimed in the elder, a handsome lad named Jean. "You need to become stronger."

And every time, Armin would try to back out but fail, due to his foster father's incredible hearing and clear disapproval of anything that didn't build muscle.

So Armin would try his hardest. He'd carry bags of grain on his shoulders as he hiked up mountains, but later collapse from exhaustion. He'd stand under waterfalls, but later lay in bed all day with a terrible cold. Eren and Jean soon gave up on him.

On the eve of Armin's 16th birthday, a ball was held in the castle. Jean and Eren received their invitations in the mail within days of it being announced, but Armin—though eagerly awaiting his—never got one.

"You can't go," said Shadis. "You don't have enough muscle. You have to stay at home and build more."

Jean nodded in agreement. "I've already helped you a lot, Armin. You need to learn on your own."

"B-but," sputtered Armin. "I've always wanted to go to the muscle ball. I know I don't have muscles and I hate working out, but I hear the princess is going to be there."

At this, Eren's eyes narrowed. "I like the princess, Armin. You know that."

Shadis shook his head. "Armin, you're not going to the ball and that's final. And while you're at home, I want you to clean the equipment. You can't work out with dirty equipment." Grabbing Jean and Eren by the scruff of their collars, he dragged the boys out to their wagon and departed, leaving a weeping Armin on the floor.

"All I've ever wanted was to meet the princess!" He sobbed.

"Really?" Asked a voice.

Armin's head shot up. "Who's there?"

A beautiful girl with dark hair walked out of the shadows. She was clad in a white sports bra and matching bicycle shorts, her perfectly tone stomach reflecting the dim light of the candles.

"Who are you?" Asked Armin.

The intruder spun a sparkling dumbell around her index finger. "I'm your fairy godmother."

"Do you have a name?"

"Lots," she said. "Though, it's usually whatever combination of profanity people can think of when I'm pining them down and there's two seconds on the clock left. But, you can call me Mikasa."

"What are you doing here, Mikasa?"

Mikasa quirked a brow. "I'm here to grant you a wish, Armin."

"But why?" Armin gazed at his fairy godmother through a film of tears.

Mikasa grimaced. Even when crying, the boy was still unnaturally beautiful. "Because," she said, as if that passed for an acceptable answer.

Armin was about to press for more, but looking at her muscular arms, he decided not to.

"What do you want to wish for?" Mikasa asked.

"I want to go to the muscle ball," said Armin immediately.

"Really?"

"Really," replied Armin.

"That's it?" Mikasa shrugged. "Simple enough." And with that, she waved her sparkling dumbell and with a shower of light, two body-builders appeared. "Reiner. Bert. We have some work to do."

The blonde pulled out a fatsuit, while the taller one sighed and began misting Armin's body with water.

When it was all done, Armin was clad in a suit that made him look far more muscular than he actually was. A sweatband decorated his blonde hair and fancy running shoes adorned his feet. "Couldn't you have given me actual muscles?"

"Hun, we need to have something to work with," said Mikasa. "I did my best, okay?"

Armin gave an experimental twirl in front of a mirror that Bert had provided. "I look so _strong_."

Reiner choked on his laughter. Mikasa elbowed him in the stomach.

"What about my ride?"

"Can't you drive?" Mikasa asked.

"No."

Mikasa waved the dumbell again. This time, a wagon appeared outside. Opening the window, Mikasa shouted, "Connie! I have a favour to ask."

Connie sighed. "Yeah, yeah, someone else needs a ride to a ball."

"There's your ride," said Mikasa, jutting a finger over her shoulder at the wagon. Before Armin could run off, she grabbed him by the shoulder. "Make sure you're back before midnight. The fatsuit will deflate by then."

Armin nodded, eyes wide.

"Oh, and take this." Mikasa handed Armin a sweatband. "I had to use magic to make it small enough for your hand. It'll tie the whole outfit together."

"Thank you!" Armin said cheerily, climbing into the wagon. "Thank you all!"

After he left, Reiner turned to Mikasa. "Aren't you going to the ball?"

Mikasa glared. "What's your point?"

"You could have taken him as your plus-one instead of having to use magic to create a new invitation."

"But it's so much more fun this way," said Mikasa with an evil grin reminiscent of mass murderers.

When Armin had reached the ball—courtesy of one Connie Springer and possibly fairy-godmother-Mikasa—he was astounded by the sheer size of the place. Tapestries depicting muscular figures fighting giants with their bare hands adorned the walls, while stained glass made the domed room seem like a church. Long tables were lined up against the sides, providing a large area in which people were dancing. If Armin had looked close enough, he would have seen his disgruntled brothers dancing with one another, unable to find partners.

At the back of the room sat the most influential family in the land. Erwin Smith, with his perfect eyebrows and handsome features, was the sort of man whose countenance demanded respect. Even his daughter, Annie, possessed a similar disposition, though harsher. She seemed almost apathetic, as if your respect, though necessary, wouldn't move her at all. His eldest son, Levi, on the other hand, exuded a false laziness that usually fooled people into thinking he was dim or slow-witted, when in fact, he was unusually intelligent.

Armin walked slowly in the middle of the room, as slow as his fake-muscle-suit would allow him to move. As he walked, he felt the crowd part and whisper to themselves. Who was this strangely beautiful boy with the strangely beautiful muscles? Why hadn't anyone seen him before?

Annie—who'd already become bored with tonight's turn of events—leaned forward to access the newcomer. She felt a rare smile on her face. Standing up from her ornate chair, she made her way down the steps to greet the boy.

"Hello," said Armin with a sweeping gesture.

Annie nodded in acknowledgement.

"Care to dance?" He asked.

Annie offered her his hand.

And despite Armin's lack of coordination when it came to anything remotely physical, he was a wonderful dancer. It was a bit of a strange talent that his foster family simply assumed was genetics. In fact, it wasn't a strange thing for them to wonder if Armin simply waltzed out of the womb or that the first steps he'd taken were a prelude to the cha-cha.

"You're a really good dancer," commented Annie admiringly.

"Thank you," said Armin. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed a girl with dark hair all clad in white. It was his fairy godmother.

She was dancing with the prince, who seemed to be quite smitten with her. However, she was gesticulating wildly in Armin's direction and pointing at Annie. Oddly enough, nobody noticed this peculiar behaviour.

"Oh!" Armin said aloud. Annie gave him a confused look. "You have beautiful eyes," said Armin.

Annie blinked once. Twice. And she narrowed her eyes.

Armin looked over Annie's shoulder. Mikasa gave him a thumbs-up and turned her attention back to Levi, who looked to be apologizing for accidentally trampling on her toes. Needless to say, Levi had been so lost in Mikasa's eyes, he'd stopped thinking and promptly forgot how to move his body.

"You're really cheesy," said Annie.

"But it's true," argued Armin.

"I hope you realize that just because you compliment me on my eyes doesn't mean I'm automatically going to be charmed by you."

Armin started sweating. He looked to Mikasa for help, but she was making out with the prince; the couple was poorly concealed behind a potted plant. He wiped his forehead with the sweatband.

"I'm sorry if I offended you," he said.

Annie's expression softened fractionally. "Whatever."

"But I do respect a lot of the work you've done!"

Annie arched a brow.

Armin took this as a sign to continue. "Like, how you've worked with the royal army and assisted your father in devising new tactics. I really admire that."

Annie blinked. "I'm surprised you know all of that."

Armin shrugged. "I pay a lot of attention to people I like."

And even though Annie had sworn off boys (and probably girls, though Mikasa might beg to differ if she had the chance), she felt her heart swell a little and she grew just the teeniest bit breathless.

"You're a really kind person, Princess Annie," said Armin.

"You can just call me Annie."

"Well, you're a really kind person, Annie."

And if she had enough time to, Annie would have asked for the boy's name and maybe even for another dance. However, at that very moment, the clock struck twelve.

Armin grew pale.

"What's the matter?" Annie asked.

"I have to go," said Armin, already feeling his muscles start to deflate. "I need to leave."

"Why?"

"I'm sorry," sputtered Armin. "It was nice talking to you, it really was! I just have to go, now." Feeling like he was wading through quicksand, Armin ran as fast as he could, Annie right behind him.

"Wait!" Annie called. "I don't even know your name!"

Unfortunately, Armin had chosen to wipe the sweat from his face at that very moment and hadn't hurt Annie's plea. As he climbed into Connie's wagon, his sweatband got caught on a splinter of wood sticking out. He pulled the band off and let it fall to the ground as the cart peeled away.

Annie walked over to where Armin had left the sweatband. She picked it up and studied the little bit of blue cloth. "I'm going to find you," she whispered. "I swear I will."

"I can probably help you with that," said a mysterious voice behind her.

Annie turned around. The source of the voice was a beautiful girl with dark hair wearing a white gown that probably wasn't supposed to be _that _disheveled.

"You can?" Annie asked. "I mean, not that I care or anything. It'd just be easier if I didn't have to do it alone."

"Yeah," Mikasa said. "I can help. But in exchange, you have to help me and your brother."

"How?"

Mikasa held out her hand. "Tell me where your dad hid the keys to his chastity belt and you've got yourself a deal."

"Deal."

* * *

Reviews are greatly appreciated! Part II will be coming soon :)


	2. Chapter 2

**CinderArmin**

**SUMMARY**: Once upon a time, there lived a beautiful boy named Armin who wanted nothing more than to go to the ball and dance with the princess. Too bad his foster-family doesn't consider him muscular enough to go. But maybe with a little help from a certain disgruntled fairy godmother, Armin's dreams can come true. Armin x Annie, Levi x Mikasa.

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: **Mikasa is pretty OOC in this fic and there's a good reason for that. This AU version of Mikasa is a fairy. She didn't have to endure what canon!Mikasa went through and has never really known him. Canon!Mikasa's personality was heavily influenced by Eren and the trials they underwent. Basically, this is how I imagine Mikasa to be if she was a magical being with a considerable amount of power.

**DISCLAIMER: **Don't own.

* * *

With the help of one sly fairy-godmother, Princess Annie began the search throughout her kingdom for the elusive beautiful boy who'd charmed her. Mikasa had suggested that Annie use the boy's dropped sweatband to search for him. And so, Annie did.

Going from house to house, Annie coerced every male to try on the sweatband. However, due to its small size, not a single person could manage to comfortably wear it.

"I'm never going to find him," she said to Mikasa.

Mikasa leaned on her magical staff, which was actually just a sixty-five pound barbell. "You'll find him," she assured Annie. "With me helping you, you'll find him for sure."

"Don't make it seem like you're doing this out of the goodness of your own heart," said Annie. "You're only doing this because there's something in it for you."

"Which I haven't received yet," said Mikasa, wiggling the fingers of her outstretched hand at Annie. "Didn't you promise me the key to Levi's chastity belt?"

"I'm looking for it," insisted Annie. "Can't you just break it open or use magic or something?" She pointed at Mikasa's staff. "You use magic, don't you?"

Mikasa sighed heavily. "Listen, if you want me to help you, you have to do something for me in return. Besides, if I use magic, your dad is going to know something is up. Or I might damage Levi."

Annie eyed Mikasa's toned arms and muscled stomach. "I'm pretty sure you would."

Mikasa flexed, her arms sparkling in the sunlight. "You're just jealous."

"Not really," countered Annie, stepping onto the cobblestone path of another house they were going to try. "I have some pretty nice muscles of my own."

"Not as nice as mine, I'll bet." Mikasa leaned on the side of the house as Annie knocked furiously on the door.

"You're a wizard. It's unfair to compare me to you."

"I'm actually a fairy."

Annie gave Mikasa an exaggerated once-over. "Well, you're the biggest fairy I've ever seen."

Mikasa quirked a brow. "Have you _seen_ my sidekicks? Reiner's arms are the size of my calves," she said, just as the door opened.

"Can I help you?" Asked the owner of the house, a smiling girl with brown hair.

"Yes," replied Annie. "Where is the man of the house?"

The owner smiled even wider. "If by 'man', you're referring to owner, than that's me. And I'm not a man, actually. My name's Sasha."

"No, she means literal man." Mikasa spun her barbell around her wrist, letting the jewel on top catch the sunlight.

"Oh," said Sasha. "Well, Connie's just inside. Would you like to come in?"

"That would be appreciated," said Annie.

"I'll wait out here," said Mikasa.

"You're not coming in?" Annie asked. "Aren't you supposed to be helping me?"

"I am," replied Mikasa. "I'm making sure your father doesn't know that you're out here looking for a strange guy you danced with the other night. I'm masking your presence right now."

Annie rolled her eyes and followed Sasha into the house.

"Sweet potato!" Sasha called up the stairs. "Someone's looking for you."

With a series of loud bangs and thumps, a man came rushing down the steps, taking two at a time until he nearly tripped. "Did you call?" He asked Sasha.

"You bet!"

Connie turned to Annie. "Can I help you with something?"

Annie held up the sweatband. "Can you do me a favour and try this on?"

Connie eyed the band apprehensively. "What's this for?"

"It's for a survey," said Annie, using the speech that Mikasa had rehearsed with her earlier. "We're trying to research sweatbands and the effect they have on men."

"Sounds...interesting," said Sasha. "Connie, try it on."

Connie pulled on the sweatband. However, it wouldn't even go past his knuckles. Connie pulled again, but it seemed that the more he pulled, the tighter the sweatband became. With a huff, he eventually gave up. "I'm sorry," he said, handing the sweatband back to Annie. "I don't think it's going to fit me. Do you have anything larger?"

"No, I'm afraid not." Annie took the band back. "Thank you for your participation, though." She briskly walked out of the house.

"Did you find him?"

"No, Mikasa."

"Hm," said Mikasa. "Well, maybe you'll have better luck at the next house."

"How many houses do we have to check before I find him?" Annie asked.

"A lot, probably." Mikasa sped up, matching Annie's pace. "You know, I'm really surprised that you're putting so much effort into this."

"Because this is important," said Annie. "I want to find that boy."

Mikasa smiled to herself. If Annie had been looking at Mikasa that very moment, she would have seen that smile. It was the smile of someone who knew every secret in the universe and would not hesitate to exploit them for her own means. "You'll find him. I know it."

"I hope," said Annie.

Suddenly, Mikasa grabbed Annie by the arm. "Maybe we should try this house instead."

"Why?"

"Just trust me."

Annie strode up to the door and rapped on it thrice.

It was opened after the second knock. "Who's there?" A young boy with green eyes asked, peering around curiously.

"Only a couple of strangers," Mikasa chimed in. "May we speak with the men of this house?"

"Um, sure," he said shyly, not used to beautiful girls knocking on his door and asking to speak with him. He opened the door wider, letting the two girls in.

"I'm Mikasa and this is Annie. We're conducting a survey on sweatbands and their effect on men. We were wondering if you'd like to participate?"

Annie noticed that Mikasa's magic barbell had disappeared and was replaced with a red towel that hung around her neck in a manner that suggested she'd been working out for a while. The towel seemed to glow from underneath.

"Sure," said the boy. "Jean!"

An older boy came running down the stairs. "What is it, Eren?"

"There are two girls asking us to participate in something."

The frequency of Jean's footsteps increased exponentially.

"Don't you have another brother to ask?" Asked Mikasa.

"How did you know that?" Eren looked at her, awe and jealously present in his gaze. Mostly awe.

"I know everything," said Mikasa.

Annie rolled her eyes again. Mikasa could have a bit of an effect on humans when she wanted to.

"Wow," breathed Jean, slightly out of breath. But, whether it was from running down the stairs at top speed, or seeing the Princess and a fairy in one room, nobody could tell.

"We were wondering if you could participate in our survey," asked Annie.

"I'd do anything," he said, moreso to Mikasa. "What do I have to do?"

"Try that on," said Mikasa, pointing to the sweatband in Annie's hands.

However, like every other boy they'd asked, Jean failed to get the band on properly.

"It's too small," he said, dejected. "I'm sorry."

"Nice try," said Mikasa, smiling. Annie swore she detected something sinister in her gaze, but fae were odd creatures.

"Can I try it on?" Asked Eren. Annie handed the sweatband to him. Eren yanked at it, but it refuses to budge. "I'll pull harder," he reassured the girls. "It just needs a bit of force."

"Don't break it," warned Annie.

"He won't," said Mikasa. "It won't break even if you tried to cut it."

Eventually, even Eren had to give up. "I can't believe it didn't fit," he said to Annie, trying and failing to disguise a blush as the blonde girl watched him.

"Looks like nobody in this household can fit that sweatband," said Jean. "I apologize for disappointing you lovely ladies."

"Actually," said Mikasa. "You haven't completely disappointed us yet. Where's Armin?"

"How do you know about Armin?" Jean asked.

"You have another brother? Where is he?" Annie asked.

"Upstairs," answered Eren, eager to impress her.

"Could you get him to come downstairs for me?" Emulating MIkasa, Annie gave Eren a bright, if fake, smile.

The boy immediately complied.

Annie was looking up at the stairs when a slightly blonde boy appeared. He didn't look very muscular or strong. He walked with his shoulders hunched, a far cry from the boy Annie had danced with. He hardly resembled him.

"I don't think that's him," she whispered to Mikasa.

"Hm," said the fairy. "We'll just wait and see."

When Armin came down, Annie explained their reason for being there. Armin agreed to participate, taking the sweatband from Annie. He slid it down onto his wrist easily and it hung there like it was made for him.

"You're the boy?" Annie asked, her voice barely a whisper.

"Were you expecting someone different, Princess Annie?" Armin asked, seeing through the slight glamour that Mikasa had placed on Annie earlier to prevent anyone from recognizing her. "I apologize for not living up to your expectations."

Annie only gave Mikasa a fleeting look, but the fairy understood it immediately. "Eren, Jean," she said to the two remaining brothers. "May I have a tour of the town?"

"Of course," said Jean.

"And leave Armin with the Princess?" Eren asked, flabbergasted and a little angry that he hadn't noticed it was her.

"I'll be fine," said Annie. "Show Mikasa around."

Soon, they were gone, leaving Armin and Annie alone.

"You're very different from what I expected," said Annie. "But it's not a bad different."

"Really," said Armin. "You don't sound too happy."

"That's because I've been hanging with a fairy for several days in a row. Most humans can't even last one and I've had to endure three."

Armin nodded understandingly.

"Anyways," Annie continued, "I wanted to meet you because you're the first person who's ever really been nice to me and said that they liked me for my accomplishments and not for my looks."

"I appreciate your looks as well, to be honest."

"And I appreciate your honesty," said Annie. "Look, I'd really like a chance to get to know you better. Would you be okay with that?"

"Only if you're okay with the fact that I'm not super muscular like everyone else and I'm actually pretty physically weak."

Annie showed off her admirable biceps to Armin. "I think I have enough muscle for the two of us."

"I also prefer reading to exercise."

"Then you can read to me while I exercise."

"One time, I nearly fainted while-"

Annie cut him off with a kiss. It was only a soft touch of the lips, but it was enough to shut Armin up.

"Wow," he said when they parted. He put a finger to his lips. "I don't think I've ever been kissed before."

"Me neither," said Annie. She tried to sound as deadpan as she usually was, but her huge smile opposed her efforts.

"Wanna try it again?" Armin asked.

Annie chose not to answer and instead, wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him close.

And everyone lived happily ever after.

_the end (but not really)_

**OMAKE**

"Mikasa, what do you do to humans who fall in love with fae?" Levi asked, wringing his cravat nervously.

"It depends," said Mikasa. "Sometimes, we grant them eternal life and let them live with us and sometimes we turn them into rabbits and set our dogs on them."

The pair were enjoying a relaxing afternoon in Levi's chambers. Mikasa sat upright on the bed, practicing her bicep curls, while Levi lay down with his head in her lap.

"So, say that a Prince hypothetically fell in love with a fairy whose job was to grant wishes. What would happen then?"

Mikasa shrugged. "That depends, too. If the Prince was willing to leave behind his life as a human being, the fairy might consider giving him immortality and letting him live with her forever."

Levi sat up abruptly, banging his head on Mikasa's magic dumbbell. "Really?"

Mikasa cocked her head. "Of course. See, if the fairy was in love with the Prince as well, she'd be more than willing."

"I really do love you, Mikasa."

"I know," she said in a sing-song voice. "But what about the Prince's father?"

Levi scoffed. "I'm sure the Prince's father would rather his daughter and her incredibly intelligent boyfriend inherit the throne. The Prince just wants to be with his fairy soulmate forever."

"I hope you realize that you don't get magical powers, too."

"As long as I'm with you, everything is already magical."

**EPILOGUE**

"And so the Princess married CinderArmin and eventually the two of them became King and Queen of the kingdom. They were very much in love and had four children, each with beautiful golden hair and eyes as blue as the sky. When the Princess and CinderArmin died, the fairy turned them into stars and created the constellation, 'Those Idiots'.

"As for the Prince, he became immortal and lived with the fairy forever. And for some strange reason, he too, gained some magical powers of his own that allowed him to grant minor wishes. The duo became fairy godparents, helping people throughout the land in exchange for favours.

"The two brothers, realizing the important of knowledge, opened up a bookstore where they taught fitness and politics. It was the most popular place in the land and nobody suspected a certain fairy who had been feeling rather generous that day.

"And everyone lived happily ever after. Even the fairy's sidekicks."

"Bert, that was a terrible story." Reiner, the stockier of Mikasa's sidekicks said. "You should never be allowed to make up stuff like that again."

Bert slammed the book shut. "Say what you want, but it actually happened. And I didn't write it. Mikasa did."

Reiner scoffed. "The boss is a terrible story-teller, but even she isn't that bad."

"Who's a terrible story-teller?"

Bert began sweating nervously. "Hey boss. I'm a terrible story-teller."

Mikasa smiled sweetly. "Good. Now, let's get going. Some kid got kicked out of their home for being too beautiful and is going to get their heart cut out if we don't intervene."

"Please don't tell me you're going to turn us into dwarves, _again._"

_the (actual) end_

* * *

Reviews make me giggle with happiness.


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